Does this sound like a bad pinion bearing scream/howl/growl? Preload lost?

Alright, shop regard the truck about 2 years back now, and the drivetrain has had issues since. On the front diff, they ruined both Toyota CVs and replaced w non-OEM and when they did, removed the internal snap ring on the diff side to aid in reinstallation. That left me a bad leak and an almost backed out CV shaft. Also didn't torque the clamshell well enough and developed a gnarly leak there.

Rear diff wise, they boogered the pinion seal twice(replaced by them under warranty) and ruined a wheel sensor.

Now to the current issue. I'd been smelling diff fluid near the rear for a week, but saw no leak, and nothing seeping or splattering. About this time, I start getting a louder and louder truck. I chalked this up to tires wearing(my old cooper ST Maxxs were LOUD, new ones a KO3s). Took a 5 hour trip and back to UT to fish, and found a leaking pinion seal. Not terrible, but enough to splatter the back of my truck and anything behind the leak.

This evening, put the rear on jack stands and got the same noise. Took the bell off of one of my stethoscopes and a jammed a piece of copper pipe down the tube to make a set of diagnostic ears for me. While up on stands, the noise is definitely loudest at the pinion, with some noise at the carrier bearing area, and none at the wheel bearing sections.

Check the links for the vids I took and tell me what you think of the noise you hear, please:



As of now, I'm anticipating an R&R of the 3rd member and a trip to Zuks for some top notch work.

 

I can’t make out the sound completely but it’s definitely noisy. I’m sure Ken aka Zuk can tell you exactly what’s going on and make it right. Zuk is hands down the best gear guy I’ve ever worked with.

 

I'll try to get another audio clip when driving today; it's pretty damn loud.

I emailed Zuk and will definitely be going that route. Just not looking forward to pulling my diffs.

 

Alright, take a listen to this one please.




Now, the big question...redo just the rear, with the knowledge that it failed after less than 2 years w this shop's work, and *hope* that the front holds out. Or, have Zuk do front and rear? 4.88s are in there now and not the oompf that I'd hoped for, so maybe 5.29s.

The cost of doing both is still far less than a down payment on a truck, and I really hate having debt, so not keen on buying a different vehicle with what I've done to this one.

I'd appreciate thoughts on it.

 

Glad you told me to avoid that shop. Zuk is great. If you're thinking 5.29s, it makes sense to do it now since it's going to be half apart anyway. plus, if the original shop screwed up the gear mesh as bad as they screwed up everything else, it might have worn your 4.88s weird to where they'll need to be re-polished or replaced anyway. Happened to a guy on here recently

 

That sounds pretty dam bad. Easiest way to tell if to take a quick sample of from the drain plug on it, if its metallic its toast.

 

That'll be this weekend; going to replace the pinion seal to limp it along for a bit.

 

That’s a bummer, I’d get it to Zuk and go with the 5.29’s, if they got the rear differential wrong I wouldn’t trust the front clamshell. I had a ECGS front clamshell in my Tacoma with 4.88’s and ARB’s that sounded similar in 4wd and sure enough the pinion seal started leaking. I let ECGS know and they sent me a call tag and turned it around in a few days. I was living in Alaska at the time and used 4wd constantly this happened during the 500 mile break-in. If it's eating pinion seals, it definitely isn't right.

 

Well, Zuk is definitely beyond good on the customer service. I've got gears on order from Revolution, being shipped directly to Ayers Gear and Machine in PHX for cryo and REM, then to ZUK for the set-up.

As an FYI, Revolution's REM machine is down for at least three weeks, so keep that in mind if you are planning a regear on a time crunch.

Parker at Ayers was great to talk to as well.

Now, I just need to clean up the garage a bit so I can fit Big Booty Judy in(requires taking off the solar panel, airing down the bags, airing down the tires, and backing in very carefully.